Friday, December 14, 2012

1. Natural resources futures study
A British think tank Chatham House published a study on future resource issues in agriculture, metals, and energy sectors in the years 2020, 2030, and 2040. It is very informative.

In 2012, there were two mutually conflicting renewable electricity futures studies.

(1) Pro-renewable futures study
This report admits renewable electricity demands more costs than conventional power sources. But its conclusion is that a high-penetration (80%) of renewables in the U.S. electricity system by 2050 is environmentally desirable and technologically doable.

(2) Pro-nuclear futures study
This NEA report is not entirely about futures. But some of its data contain projections into 2020, 2030, and 2050. It considered 10% and 30% penetration levels of renewables in the grid. The NEA says grid integration costs of renewable electricity are too high. (How high? See the table below the citation.)